Peterborough owner Darragh MacAnthony is like a breath of fresh air when it comes to owners of football clubs, always willing to engage with fans on social media.
He regularly can be found tweeting not only Posh fans but also fielding and answering questions from supporters of other clubs. Put it this way, if he were to gain a £1 for every question about the futures of Marcus Maddison and Jack Marriott then he’d be an exceedingly happy man indeed.
Courteous to a tee, he comes across as a true gentleman. Except for when he read the following:
Hi John, for a start I have never played football for money, I went to prove a point at Peterborough on absolute peanuts, I proved I was more than good enough for the EFL so do me a favour and don’t give me that when you don’t know me I give my all for your club so give it a rest
— Danny Lloyd (@dannylloyd1) July 16, 2018
Lloyd, who left Peterborough and the third tier of English football to drop to the National Conference and England’s fifth-tier competition with Salford City, has used the term “absolute peanuts” to describe the deal he was on at the ABAX Stadium.
Now, to an owner that is not only Twitter savvy, but also Twitter accomplished, the use of the derogatory “absolute peanuts” was like a red rag to a bull. This can be seen by the following retort:
Imagine getting paid over £80k in your first year of playing professional league football & describing it as earning peanuts 😳🙄😬. Genuinely in shock reading that. But then again nothing surprises me in this game. But still wish him every success in future endeavours & thanks.
— Darragh MacAnthony (@DMAC102) July 16, 2018
Whilst MacAnthony might have been in a state of shock, the same can’t be said of some fans commenting on the post – shock being replaced by a sense of growing anger. Here’s some examples of what they are saying.
Things id do to earn that wage. No wonder people feel disassociated with footballers.
— Aidan Cooper (@AidanCooperUK) July 16, 2018
80k a year 😲i get less than 20k a year working on front line ambulance!!! Can i work for you @DMAC102 please!!!
— Matt Withers (@mattwithers36) July 16, 2018
This sort of thing really pisses me off! The sooner there’s a player salary cap the better. Why should fans pay over £20 to watch a game, £45 for a football top ect just for a player to come out with comments like this.
— Gaz (@GazR83) July 16, 2018
I wouldn't know what to do with £80k a year. Footballers need to come back to earth
— Cameron Clark (@Camclarky) July 16, 2018
It’s so annoying! When we as a club find it hard to find sponsors to pay for our players training kits and tracksuits. Money like this is being wasted in the game. 😡
— Harwich and Parkeston FC (@OfficialHarwich) July 16, 2018
What an absolute clown you’ve made yourself look @dannylloyd1 😂 You ran around a lot I’ll give you that, but ultimately achieved nothing, we’ll done. £80k peanuts?! What an insult. You’ve dropped down two divisions for the 💷💷 just be honest at least
— Stephen Barker (@steve9200) July 16, 2018
There’s plenty more on a lengthy thread as Peterborough fans continue to pour out scorn and anger at the comments of a player leaving the club in a way that he’s flicking the bird at them on the way out.
However, the general consensus from Peterborough fans is a mixture of rising ire and thankful good riddances for a player who’s obviously blackened his name at the club.